“It was the best experience I’ve ever had on a golf course”: the details that amazed Joaquín Niemann on his first day at LIV

Joaquín Niemann’s debut at LIV Golf allowed thousands of Chilean fans to see golf from a new league perspective for the first time. One that differs greatly from the PGA, not only in the way of playing it, but also in everything that surrounds it.

There are many elements that collide with the PGA. They are two totally different moods, where one undoubtedly aspires to a more solemn and traditional ambiance, while the other is frank and modern.

Here are the details that marked Niemann’s Boston debut. The one where he lost in the tiebreaker and where he was delighted with the atmosphere generated by the new tour. “It was the best experience I have ever had on a golf course. “, he launched after the last lap on the official channels of the tour.

“Golf, but stronger” is the main slogan of LIV. It can be seen on the giant banners that stand on the tournament tees and in most of the advertisements the tour runs on its social media. A phrase as ambitious as it is real.

And it is that the music is something characteristic of LIV. The giant speakers, placed at strategic locations on the field, reproduce the great classics of yesteryear and the songs most broadcast on current radio stations throughout the round. Gone are those silent postcards as a golfer prepares to hit a key shot for his round. . Everything here is fun and party.

A situation which, far from bothering the players, seems to relax them. It was all laughs as they came off the tee or prepared to hit the putt, still under world hit lines.

Plus, it’s not just on the pitch, there’s music, because for the fans, there are live performances after the innings are over. In order to captivate the participants, the Boston edition had, for example, groups as guests Dalton & The Sheriffs and Saint Lucia and American DJ Diplo .

Focusing clearly on the protagonists, they also look different in this LIV. There is no rivalry, no bad faces. Completely the opposite. They laugh, share and even joke together as they all play together.

For example, on the first day it was possible to see Bubba Watson interviewing Harold Varner III while the latter was on the 12th hole . Between rounds, they take time to chat and discuss the mood of the game.

Watson, who signed with LIV this year but won’t play until 2023 due to injury, is something of a league host during this time. Besides interviewing players, he hangs out in fan zones and makes videos for official channels.

Also in the days before the start of the tournamentplayers share private parties and camaraderie dinners . Unlike the PGA Tour where everyone went their own way, here the goal is to form a solid group among the competitors.

Unlike the PGA where the titles are issued in a solemn manner and a few steps from the final green, here the show takes over from the award ceremony. Far from this format, there is a podium at LIV, a podium in the purest Formula 1 style.

Players celebrate with champagne and Go Pro cameras attached to bottles. It’s a total party, where there are lights and flashes everywhere. Something that in the PGA would have been very difficult to see.

But there was also room for small protests on Friday. As the action was about to begin in Boston, a dozen people stood at one of the entrances to the camp to criticize Saudi economic support.

A support that has attracted the evil eyes of certain North American spheres. On this occasion, the collective Massachusetts Peace Action distributed brochures with messages alluding to the crimes perpetrated in this Middle Eastern country. “Saudi money is blood money “O”Saudi Arabia kills journalists and children in Yemen “, were some of the slogans they showed.

“The main reason we’re here is because Saudi Arabia is funding this golf tournament,” Paul Shannon told US media hours before Phil Mickelson hit the tournament’s first pitch.